Particle.news
Download on the App Store
16 ARTICLES
·
4h ago

Obama Launches Statewide Ad Urging Yes on California’s Prop 50 as Early Voting Begins

The measure would temporarily replace commission maps with legislature-drawn lines projected to tilt up to five U.S. House seats toward Democrats.

A sample ballot is pictured before early voting starts in California's statewide special election, Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Paula Ulichney-Munoz)
Gavin Newsom is in Los Angeles to announce an effort to quickly redraw the state’s congressional districts, at the Japanese American Museum in Los Angeles on Aug. 14, 2025. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
Image
Image

Overview

  • Voting is underway after ballots were mailed last week, with the Nov. 4 special election deciding whether California adopts the new congressional map through 2030.
  • Proposition 50 would bypass the voter-created independent redistricting commission for three election cycles; nonpartisan reviews say the plan broadly mirrors current lines but increases Democratic-leaning seats and maintains Voting Rights Act benchmarks.
  • Analysts identify five Republican-held districts—1, 3, 22, 41 and 48—as the primary targets likely to become more competitive for Democrats if the measure passes.
  • Barack Obama appears in a new 30-second ad urging a yes vote, while former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger fronts opposition arguing the change undermines independent redistricting.
  • State filings show supporters have raised over $129 million and opponents more than $78 million, as national stakes grow with North Carolina Republicans advancing their own House map redraw.